{{WP:Reliable sources/Perennial sources/Header}}
{{WP:RSPIntro|The Washington Free Beacon}}
This source has separate reliability assessments by time period or topic; each is presented in its own section below.
__TOC__
== 2012–2018 ==
{{Infobox source reliability
| type = website
| title = [[The Washington Free Beacon]] (2012–2018)
| shortcut =
| status = gu
| last = 2025
| domain1 = freebeacon.com
| rfc = [[Wikipedia:Reliable sources/Noticeboard/Archive 478#RFC on the reliability of the Washington Free Beacon|Rfc]]
| rfcdate = 2025
}}
=== Summary ===
Most editors considered the ''Washington Free Beacon'' to be generally unreliable as a source during the editorship of [[Matthew Continetti]], particularly for material about BLPs or political topics. There was no consensus to deprecate it in a 2020 discussion, and a 2025 discussion confirmed consensus for its status as generally unreliable.
=== Discussions ===
{{WP:RSPLinks}}
==== RSN ====
* [[WP:Reliable sources/Noticeboard/Archive 227#Washington Free Beacon]]
* [[WP:Reliable sources/Noticeboard/Archive 291#Using The Washington Free Beacon in politically related BLPs - is it an RS?]]
=== Recency ===
{{WP:RSPLAST/sandbox|2025|table=no}}
=== Rfcs ===
# 2025 [[Wikipedia:Reliable sources/Noticeboard/Archive 478#RFC on the reliability of the Washington Free Beacon|Rfc]]
== 2019–present ==
{{Infobox source reliability
| type = website
| title = [[The Washington Free Beacon]] (2019–present)
| shortcut = WP:FREEBEACON
| status = gr
| last = 2025
| domain1 = freebeacon.com
| rfc = [[Wikipedia:Reliable sources/Noticeboard/Archive 478#RFC on the reliability of the Washington Free Beacon|Rfc]]
| rfcdate = 2025
}}
=== Summary ===
Most editors considered the ''Washington Free Beacon'' to have become generally reliable during the editorship of [[Eliana Johnson]]. However, some editors consider it a [[Wikipedia:PARTISAN|partisan source]]. All editors should be aware that the ''Free Beacon'' sometimes publishes satirical or humorous articles which should be distinguished from their usual journalistic work. Some editors found articles by Andrew Stiles (''The Stiles Section'') generally unreliable.
=== Discussions ===
{{WP:RSPLinks}}
==== RSN ====
* [[WP:Reliable sources/Noticeboard/Archive 227#Washington Free Beacon]]
* [[WP:Reliable sources/Noticeboard/Archive 291#Using The Washington Free Beacon in politically related BLPs - is it an RS?]]
=== Recency ===
{{WP:RSPLAST/sandbox|2025|table=no}}
=== Rfcs ===
# 2025 [[Wikipedia:Reliable sources/Noticeboard/Archive 478#RFC on the reliability of the Washington Free Beacon|Rfc]]
== Excerpt ==
{{hatnote|Excerpt from the lead of [[The Washington Free Beacon]]:}}
{{excerpt|The Washington Free Beacon|paragraphs=1|only=paragraphs|hat=no|references=no|inline=yes}}
==Notes==
{{notelist}}
==References==
== Original table rows for comparison ==
''(remove this when this source page is ready to go live)''
{{Wikipedia:RSPTableHeader}}
|- class="s-gu" id="The Washington Free Beacon 2012-2018"
| data-sort-value="Washington Free Beacon 2012-2018" | ''[[The Washington Free Beacon]]'' (2012–2018)
| {{WP:RSPSTATUS|gu}}
| {{rsnl|478|RFC on the reliability of the Washington Free Beacon|2025|rfc=yes}}
| {{WP:RSPLAST|2025}}
| Most editors considered the ''Washington Free Beacon'' to be generally unreliable as a source during the editorship of [[Matthew Continetti]], particularly for material about BLPs or political topics. There was no consensus to deprecate it in a 2020 discussion, and a 2025 discussion confirmed consensus for its status as generally unreliable.
| {{WP:RSPUSES|freebeacon.com}}
|- class="s-gr" id="The Washington Free Beacon 2019-present"
| data-sort-value="Washington Free Beacon 2019-present" |''[[The Washington Free Beacon]]'' (2019–present) {{WP:RSPSHORTCUT|WP:FREEBEACON}}
| {{WP:RSPSTATUS|gr}}
| {{rsnl|478|RFC on the reliability of the Washington Free Beacon|2025|rfc=yes}}
| {{WP:RSPLAST|2025}}
|Most editors considered the ''Washington Free Beacon'' to have become generally reliable during the editorship of [[Eliana Johnson]]. However, some editors consider it a [[Wikipedia:PARTISAN|partisan source]]. All editors should be aware that the ''Free Beacon'' sometimes publishes satirical or humorous articles which should be distinguished from their usual journalistic work. Some editors found articles by Andrew Stiles (''The Stiles Section'') generally unreliable.
| {{WP:RSPUSES|freebeacon.com}}
|}